Varenne en Argonne Church in Varennes-en-Argonne. Saint Balderic carries the child Jesus. Oct 2014
Varenne en Argonne Church in Varennes-en-Argonne or simply Varennes is a commune in the Meuse department in Lorraine in north-eastern France. Oct 2014 It was the scene of the Flight to Varennes: In June 1791 Louis XVI, with his immediate family, made a dash for the nearest friendly border, that of Austrian Belgium (Queen Marie-Antoinette being a sister to the Austrian emperor, Leopold II). But in Varennes Louis and his family were arrested, by Citizen Drouet, the local postmaster, who had been alerted by a message received from nearby Sainte-Menehould. It is said that at Sainte-Menehould, where the escaping party had spent the previous night, a merchant alerted the town authorities of their presence after recognizing the King's face on a coin, as Louis tried to buy something from a shop. Once more France's king, queen, and dauphin (crown prince) returned to the Tuileries in humiliating captivity, and Louis and Marie-Antoinette were subsequently executed on the guillotine. Located in the Zone rouge, Varennes was completely destroyed during the First World War but was reconstructed afterwards. The Pennsylvania Memorial, a monument for volunteers from Pennsylvania in the First World War, was erected in Varennes during the Interwar period.
Size: 2832px × 4256px
Location: Varenne en Argonne; France
Photo credit: © BRIAN HARRIS / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: argonne, argonnesaint, baby, baleric, battlefield, brian, church, en, god, golden, harris, jesus, light, religion, statues, varenne
